What Emiliano Martínez Expects From Hostile French Crowd in Aston Villa-PSG Champions League Tie | OneFootball

The FIFA international break is over, and club football is back, with the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals taking center stage.

Paris Saint-Germain will take on Aston Villa for a place in the semifinals. PSG is coming off a dramatic Round of 16 win over Liverpool, sealing the victory in a tense penalty shootout.

Aston Villa had a much smoother path, cruising past Club Brugge with a dominant 6-1 aggregate win. The Premier League side will be fired up for this matchup, especially with Unai Emery and Marco Asensio both eager to get one over on PSG.

Beyond the managerial and player reunions, another key storyline is Emiliano Martínez making a return to France, adding even more intrigue to the tie.

Emiliano Martínez braces for reaction from French crowd

Julian Finney/Getty Images

Martínez faced Lille last season in the UEFA Europa League and didn’t get the warmest reception. Now, the 2022 FIFA World Cup winner will be back in France, this time in the capital, with the first leg set for the Parc des Princes.

“The advantage is that my team will have less pressure because they will insult me,” Martínez told Telefe (h/t Le10Sport). “It’s going to be exciting. I’ve already received messages. We’re strong at home, but away, we struggle more. It’s a knockout round; anything can happen.

Martínez remembers the reception from the Lille crowd during the return leg of the UEFA Europa Conference League quarterfinal in April 2024.

“They insulted me the whole match,” Martínez recalled. “Never have I been insulted like that in my life. They did everything to me. I didn’t do anything during the 120 minutes of the game, and people insulted me with every clearance. Then, there was the penalty shootout, and I silenced them.”